Electric Tumblers are ideal for polishing jewellery and metals and smoothing and polishing glass, rocks, and stones. They're very popular for putting a final lustre on anything made from metals such as silver, or from Art Clay silver clay, bronze clay, copper clay, and PMC metal clays, and for adding a gloss or matte finish to beach glass and small pebbles.

Anyone who has found shiny fragments of glass, beautifully rounded pebbles, or highly polished shells on a sandy beach, has seen how continual abrasion and impacts can shape and polish even the roughest surfaces. These beach treasures have probably been in the sea for years. Fortunately, electric tumblers are thousands of times quicker, and a lot more convenient.

The tumblers are available as complete ready-to-go kits or separate parts. For prices, or to order on line, use the shop link on the right below the menu bar near the top of the page.

If you're comparing prices for tumblers, don't mistake the cost of the electric motor base on its own for the cost of a whole kit: a robustly engineered motor base, a barrel, high-quality mixed shot and cleaner or three graded grits and polish, UK VAT, and UK mainland delivery. Kits include everything you need, so you can start work straight away.

Cherry Heaven has made a photo book showing some of the popular tumblers: click the Cherry Heaven TV player above.

A rotary tumbler for jewellery and metals has a motor base unit, a revolving barrel part-filled with water, mixed stainless steel shapes, and a chemical cleaner. As the drum rotates, the mixed steel-shapes repeatedly fall onto the material to be polished and their collective tiny impacts gradually harden, polish, and burnish the surface.

A rotary tumbler for glass, rocks, and stones has a motor base unit, a revolving barrel part-filled with water and abrasive grit. As the drum rotates, the grit particles repeatedly fall onto the material to be polished and the collective tiny scratches gradually polish the surface. The grit pack contains three graded grits, zinc oxide polish, and plastic pellets to distribute the polish.

Rotary tumblers are often called barrel polishers, lapidary tumblers, jewellery tumblers, rock tumblers, or stone tumblers. The practice of cutting and polishing stones, minerals, and gems is called lapidary.

A magnetic polisher for jewellery and metals has a motor base with a stationary pot part-filled with water, mixed steel-pins, and cleaner. A rotating magnetic field makes the pins jump randomly and the collective tiny impacts and scratches gradually polish and burnish the surface. Magnetic polishers are sometimes called vibratory polishers or oscillating polishers. They're ideal for cleaning up or polishing small pieces.

An ultrasonic cleaner has a stationary chamber, part-filled with water and cleaner: no shot, no grit. Electronically generated ultrasonic waves create minute bubbles which, during the low pressure part of each wave, grow until, during the high pressure part of the wave, they're compressed and implode. The energy released cleans the objects inside. Ultrasonic cleaners are sometimes called jewellery polishers or jewellery cleaners. They're better suited to small pieces that have just dulled over time.

For metals, you need a tumbler motor base, a removable barrel, mixed shot, and cleaner: for glass and stones, a tumbler motor base, a removable barrel, a set of graded grits, polish, and plastic pellets to distribute the polish. Either way, you need all the components to begin work. Although you can buy the components separately, most people buy a complete kit.

Shot is the generic name for the small metal shapes used to polish and burnish. Generally, it's made of rust-resistant stainless steel as a mix of differenty-sized balls, planetoids, pins, and rods. As the drum rotates, the mixed metal-shapes repeatedly fall onto the material to be polished and their collective tiny impacts gradually harden, polish, and burnish the surface.

Grit is the generic name for the abrasive particles used to grind and polish. Generally, it's graded silicon carbide: an angular, hard, sharp, material which fractures into smaller angular particles, making it an effective abrasive. As the drum rotates, the grit particles repeatedly fall onto the material to be polished and the collective tiny scratches and impacts gradually polish the surface. However, unlike shot, it does need replacing eventually.

They all use water. However, as pure water is a poor cleaner, a small amount of special detergent is usually added. This detergent is called barelling compound, gallay compound, drum cleaner, or just tumbler cleaner.

ROTARY TUMBLER KITS: ECONOMY OR STUDIO?

Electric Tumbler Kits.

The economy electric motor base, part of kits 1 and 2, is only economy because it's smaller than the studio version, part of kits 3 and 4, has a smaller drum, and needs less shot or grit, so tumbling takes longer. The economy model can only hold one small drum. The studio model can either hold one large drum or two small drums.

Unlike cheap tumblers made for children who just want to tumble a few garden coins or beach pebbles, all the kit motor bases have a powerful motor which won't stall if the drum is full, a nylon-reinforced non-slip toothed drive belt running on toothed drive wheels rather than a neoprene loop on plain pulleys, and two roller barrel-end-stops rather than the barrel continuously rubbing on the roller support brackets.

Unless you're on a very tight budget, I'd recommend rubber barrels rather than the plastic. I'll explain why further down this page.

The tumblers used to be made by Evans Lapidary. The business has changed ownership, the design and engineering has been improved, and Mr Evans no longer makes tumblers.

ROTARY TUMBLER KITS: WHAT YOU GET

Electric Rotary Tumbler Kits.

There are four popular kits that include everything you need. If you've been comparing prices on the net you'll have realised that a low price usually means no drum, no shot and cleaner, no grits and polish, no VAT, and no delivery.

Kits 1 and 2 are occasional home tumblers. Kits 3 and 4 are far more popular as they have a more powerful motor, a larger drum, more shot, and can hold two drums. Two or more drums are a real convenience: I'll explain why further down this page.

The Kitiki Rotary Tumbler Kit 1 is a small economy tumbler, ideal for polishing jewellery and metals. It's very popular for adding a final lustre to anything made from metals such as silver, or from Art Clay, bronze clay, copper clay, and PMC metal clays. It consists of an electric motor base, a small plastic or rubber drum, 500gms of mixed-shape rust-resistant stainless-steel shot, and 225cc of barrelling compound to keep the drum and your work clean.

The Kitiki Rotary Tumbler Kit 2 is a small economy tumbler, ideal for polishing glass, rocks, and stones. It's very popular for adding a gloss or matte finish to beach glass and small pebbles. It consists of an electric motor base, a small plastic or rubber drum, three graded abrasive grits, zinc oxide polish, and plastic pellets.

The Kitiki Rotary Tumbler Kit 3 is a studio tumbler, ideal for polishing jewellery and metals. It's very popular for adding a final lustre to anything made from metals such as silver, or from Art Clay, bronze clay, copper clay, and PMC metal clays. It consists of an electric motor base, a larger rubber barrel, 1000gms of mixed-shape rust-resistant stainless-steel shot, and 225cc of barrelling compound to keep the drum and your work clean. The motor base is longer than that in Kits 1 and 2 so it can hold two 510gm rubber drums, but not two 700gm plastic drums.

The Kitiki Rotary Tumbler Kit 4 is a studio tumbler, ideal for polishing glass, rocks, and stones. It's very popular for adding a gloss or matte finish to beach glass and small pebbles. It consists of an electric motor base, a larger rubber barrel, a set of three graded abrasive grits, zinc oxide polish, and plastic pellets. The motor base is longer than that in Kits 1 and 2 so it can hold two 510gm rubber drums, but not two 700gm plastic drums.

OPTIONS AND UPGRADES

Professional Tumblers.

The kits listed above are the most popular because they do most things for most people. However, if you're in a busy studio, you have a lot of work to get through, the barrel is usually full, or you're working with larger pieces, I'd recommend a tumbler with a different or larger drum, and a more powerful motor. There are quite a few optiions and upgrades.

The Kitiki CR-1 is a professional motor base with a powerful 40W motor, a nylon reinforced toothed drive belt, and bronze roller bearings. It's ideal for polishing jewellery, metals, glass, rocks, and stones. It's not available as part of a kit, so you'll need to add a 950gm or 1000gm rubber drum, and 1000gm of shot and cleaner, or a grit pack. Or you can use two 510gm rubber drums.

The Kitiki CR-5 is a professional motor base with a powerful 40W motor, a nylon reinforced toothed drive belt, and bronze roller bearings. It's ideal for polishing jewellery, metals, glass, rocks, and stones. It's not available as part of a kit, so you'll need to add two 950gm or 1000gm rubber drums, 2000gm of shot and cleaner, or grits. As it's longer, you can use one 950gm or 1000gm rubber drum and two 510gm rubber drums, or three 510gm rubber drums.

The Kitiki ST-7 is a professional tumbler with a powerful 60W motor, a neoprene drive belt, and nylon roller bearings. It's ideal for polishing jewellery, metals, glass, rocks, and stones. It includes one 2000gm rubber drum, but you'll need to add 2000gm of shot and cleaner, or two grit packs.

The Kitiki ST-8 is an industrial tumbler with a powerful 100W motor, a neoprene drive belt, and nylon roller bearings. It's ideal for polishing jewellery, metals, glass, rocks, and stones. It includes three large 2000gm rubber drums, but you'll need to add 6000gm of shot and cleaner, or six grit packs.

The pro metalsmiths' 1000gm rubber barrel has two internal vanes. If you're polishing pieces of silver, metals, glass, rocks, or stones larger than about 25-30mm across, the vanes help to turn everything over so that you get even polishing. It has a a push-on rubber lid, not a screw-on lid.

MAGNETIC POLISHERS

Magnetic Polishers For Jewellery And Metals.

A magnetic polisher has a motor base with a removable stationary drum part-filled with water, mixed stainless-steel pins, and cleaner. A rotating magnetic field makes the pins jump randomly and the collective tiny scratches and impacts gradually polish and burnish the surface.

Generally, magnetic polishers are used for small, delicate, intricate shapes that don't need a lot of finishing: jewellery, brass, bronze, copper, gold, silver, model parts, small treasures, and low-profile fingerprint keepsakes. They hold less than rotary tumblers, but are quieter, quicker, and simpler to fill and empty.

Ultrasonic Cleaners For Glass, Jewellery, Metals, And Stones.

An ultrasonic cleaner has a fixed stationary chamber, and a removable plastic basket part-filled with water and cleaner: no shot, no grit. Electronically generated ultrasonic waves create minute bubbles which, during the low pressure part of each wave, grow until, during the high pressure part of the wave, they're compressed and implode. The energy released cleans the objects inside.

The Kitiki Ultrasonic Cleaner is ideal for cleaning jewellery and other objects, restoring their sparkle. It won't put a shine on a rough surface. However, they're inexpensive and very quick. It consists of a container base and a lift-out basket.

ROTARY TUMBLERS NOTES: THE KIT 1, 2, 3, AND 4 MOTOR BASE

Rotary Tumblers For Glass, Jewellery, Metals, And Stones.

The auminium motor bases that are part of the complete kits are simply and robustly built, with plastic feet to stop the tumbler scratching your work-top, or creeping across and falling off. The motor is under the drum rather than at the end, so the whole tumbler takes up less space.

The motor base used for kits 1 and 2 is a low-cost small unit that can hold one small barrel, plastic or rubber, although it works perfectly well. It has an adjustable, toothed, non-slip, nylon-re-inforced drive belt, and roller-ball barrel end stops.

The motor base used for kits 3 and 4 is better-engineered and longer, so it can hold one large barrel, plastic or rubber, or two small rubber. It has an adjustable, toothed, non-slip, nylon-re-inforced drive belt, and roller-ball barrel end stops.

The belt drives run for years so, apart from a drop of oil on the roller bearings occasionally, you won't have to attend to them.

ROTARY TUMBLERS NOTES: BARRELS

Rotary Tumbler Barrels And Drums.

The economy part of kits 1 and 2 is that they come with a small plastic drum. However, it's well worth upgrading to a rubber drum:

Plastic drum lids need to stand in hot water to make them easier to push on. When they are on, the whole drum needs to be squeezed to expel as much air as possible because, during prolonged tumbling, the air warms up and expands and can cause the drum to leak.

To free the lids. the whole drum has to stand in hot water. Prising them off is a good way to break your nails and there's a slight risk that, as you pull the lid off, you'll spill your work, shot or grit, and soapy water.

Plastic drums are noisy, if you have to work in the same room: especially as glass and stones might need to tumble for several days.

Rubber drums use a different lid mechanism: at one end there's an inner metal lid, a rubber sealing ring, an outer metal lid, and a retaining threaded collar. They're better, quieter, and simpler to fill and empty than plastic drums.

Professional rubber drums have internal vanes which, as the drum rotates, scoop up the shot and your pieces, increasing the tumbling action and reducing the tumbling time. They're better, quieter, and simpler to fill and empty than plastic drums.

If you want to do shot-tumbling and grit-tumbling, use two barrels: marked so that you don't mix them up. One stray grit particle caught in the shot-drum will scratch your work: and the scratches are quite hard to remove.

Ideally, and budget constraints aside, use four drums for the three grit grades and the polish: marked so that you don't mix them up. Four drums make cleaning and storing easier, especially as the three grits look similar and the polish must be kept grit-free. It also makes more sense to use the larger kit 3 tumbler so that you can use two smaller drums, with different abrasives, at the same time.

If you've bought Kit 1 or 3, but now want to polish glass and stones, you'll need a grit pack: 200gms of 80 grit, 200gms of 220 grit, 200gms of 400 grit, 200 gms of zinc oxide polish, and one pack of plastic pellets. They're in the on-line shop.

Shot is the generic name for the small metal shapes used to polish and burnish. Generally, it's a mix of differenty-sized balls, planetoids, pins, and rods.

As the drum rotates, the mixed metal-shapes repeatedly fall onto the material to be polished and their collective tiny impacts gradually harden, polish, and burnish the surface.

Most of the plain steel and stainless steel shot in the UK, and probably the EU, came from several suppliers in India. It used to be adequately made but, over the years, the quality, shapes, and mix of balls, planetoids, pins, and rods, deteriorated, especially as the raw-metal price increased.

Our shot is made for us: from expensive stain-resistant magnetic steel in four ball sizes, two planetoid sizes, four pin sizes, and two rod sizes. It's a tested and reliable mix designed to deal with the diverse range of contours on jewellery. It's made in the same factory that makes our pliers, cutters, polishers, small kilns, and other tools.

Although it's rust-resistant steel, don't leave it lying around wet: either leave it immersed in the tumbler mix of water and cleaner, or rinse it and dry it carefully.

If you need to replace the shot, don't economise and buy plain or mixed steel: unless you're meticulous about cleaning and drying it every time, it'll soon rust, make a mess, and ruin your work.

To give you some flexibility, the 1000gm of shot comes in four parts: 2 x 250gm of mixed balls and planetoids, and 2 x 250gm of mixed pins and rods. If your pieces have a lot of fine detail work, try more pins. However, once you've mixed them you won't be able to un-mix them easily, so you might want to use two drums.

ROTARY TUMBLERS NOTES: CLEANER

Cleaning Compound.

Cleaner, sometimes called barrelling compound or gallay compound, is a special mix of detergents and corrosion inhibitors used to keep the barrel and shot or pins clean, lubricate the tumbling, and help the polishing action.

The cleaner comes in a white plastic screw-top pot for convenience and safety: not a plastic bag, and not a pot that can't be closed properly once the seal has been broken.

Complete kits include a 225cc pot. Although it's filled to the brim during packing, powders settle and it may not look quite full when you open it. It's plainly much easier to fill a pot with a fixed volume than to measure out a fixed weight every time. If you want to buy more, 1000cc pots are in the on-line shop.

ROTARY TUMBLERS NOTES: GRITS

Rotary Tumbler Abrasives, Grits, And Polish.

Grits come in 400gm screw-top containers. It's enough to put in a 950gm rubber drum. If you're comparing prices, some tumbler kits only include a small amount of each grit. It's not enough, and you'll have to buy more once you've experimented.

Grit is the generic name for the abrasive particles used to grind and polish. Generally, it's graded silicon carbide: an angular, hard, sharp, material which fractures into smaller angular particles, making it an effective abrasive. However, unlike shot, it does need replacing eventually.

As the drum rotates, the grit particles repeatedly fall over the material to be polished and their collective tiny scratches gradually polish the surface.

Grit sizes are confusing, for example: 400 grit particles are not twice the size or half the size of 200 grit particles. 80 grit is classed as medium, 220 as fine, and 400 as very fine. However, most users refer to them as coarse, medium, and fine, and you'll soon learn which grits to use, and for how long, for different materials, shapes, and finishes.

You need three grades of grit for glass and stones, not two: just a coarse and a fine are a false economy as the fine won't remove the scratches from the coarse. The final polish, zinc oxide, needs added plastic pellets to distribute it, otherwise it will just stick to the walls of the barrel.

Grit should be handled and stored carefully to prevent contamination from stray larger particles that will scratch. Keep the tubs sealed until you need to use them. In use, transfer a small amount into a working container, to minimize the risk of contaminating the whole tub. And wash the drums thoroughly before and after use.

When you've finished, empty the grit into a cloth-lined sieve, rinse it thoroughly, and spread it on some cloth to dry. Be careful not to flush away any grit as it may collect in the basin trap.

The grits and polish come in plastic screw-top pots for convenience and safety: not plastic bags, and not pots that can't be closed properly once the seal has been broken.

ROTARY TUMBLERS NOTES: POLISH

Rotary Tumbler Polish.

Polish come in a 200gm screw-top container. It's enough to put in a 950gm rubber drum. If you're comparing prices, some tumbler kits only include a small amount of polish. It's not enough, and you'll have to buy more once you've experimented.

The final phase for polishing glass and stones uses a very fine zinc oxide paste mixed with small plastic pellets to help distribute it and stop it forming one lump. Although it can produce a highly-polished surface, some glass artists prefer the slighty matte surface that the finer grits produce.

Some polishes use Cerium Oxide. Cerium belongs to the group of elements known as the rare earth elements. To produce the polishing powder, about 80% of cerium oxide and 20% of other rare earths are used, resulting in a pink-ish powder. Unfortunately, it's more expensive but doesn't work any better.

Remember that, as polishing is the final step in the process, it won't remove working marks or grit scratches left from previous phases.

MAGNETIC POLISHER NOTES: PINS

Magnetic Polishers And Magnetic Steel Pins.

Most of the plain steel and stainless steel pins in the UK, and probably the EU, came from several suppliers in India. They used to be adequately made but, over the years, the quality, cuts, and mix of sizes deteriorated, especially as the raw-metal price increased.

Our pins are made for us: from expensive stain-resistant magnetic-steel wire. Cutting thin wire into 5mm lengths needs a precision guillotine with a carefully controlled feed mechanism or the cut will shear leaving a point that will scratch rather than polish your work. The size was chosen, after considerable experiment, to best polish the diverse range of contours on jewellery. They're made in the same factory that makes our pliers, cutters, polishers, small kilns, and other tools.

Initially, the stainless steel pins will have straight-cut ends, so it's a good idea to run the polisher with some scrap metal for an hour to begin to round them off slightly. Then, either keep them in the water or take them out and dry them. Some people lift the pot off to keep the pins away from the magnet when not using it.

Although it's rust-resistant steel, don't leave it lying around wet: either leave it immersed in the tumbler mix of water and cleaner, or rinse it and dry it carefully.

If you need to replace the shot, don't economise and buy plain or mixed steel: unless you're meticulous about cleaning and drying it every time, it'll soon rust, make a mess, and ruin your work.

VIDEO: STAINLESS STEEL

Promotional Video For Stainless Steel.

Cherry Heaven TV provides on-line radio and television programmes using the Cherry Heaven Player. To play, pause, or stop the player, or adjust the volume, click the controls or, whilst it's playing, drag the time-line slider to a new position.

There are 112 different types of stainless steel, better called stain-resistant steel, It's a versatile, durable, steel alloy, used in familiar domestic and industrial products. Here's a promotional video:

AUDIO QUALITY

The Cherry Heaven USB Loudspeakers.

If you're using a notebook computer, the audio quality will probably be poor and not loud enough. To remedy this, you need some external loudspeakers:

The Cherry Heaven USB Loudspeakers.

The Cherry Heaven USB Loudspeakers don't need batteries, installing, or setting up: they're powered by the computer's USB socket and driven by the stereo-out socket. You can buy them in the on-line shop. However, the photo is of a typical pair of speakers and the ones in stock might not look quite the same.

This internet resource is provided by Cherry Heaven, an international distributor, on-line shop, and support centre for kilns, accessories, materials, tools, and tumblers. It's not a bead, ceramics, crafts, glass, or metal-clay home-business, selling a few things to a market niche.